ekusudei | Entries tagged with dan rei

Asaji ga Yado / Ravir
Snow Troupe 1998

Leads: Todoroki Yuu & Tsukikage Hitomi

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( Asaji ga Yado Summary: )

What I Thought:

Oh. I'd put off watching this one for a couple of reasons, one being that it was a Nihonmono, one being that I'd already watched the shinko version... and one being that it's the last of my un-watched Tom-Era Yukigumi shows. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: There was never a more perfect combination of actresses than what was in Yukigumi between 1998 and 2000.

Asaji ga Yado has things that I like, and things that I don't much care for. I loved, as always, the Tom-Taatan combi. It's a personal favorite of mine. I loved Todoroki Yuu playing the gawking, silly young Japanese man again (see - "The Search for El Dorado"). She's much too good at it to be believed. I didn't much care for Tsukikage Hitomi's Miyagi character.... who was simply too self-defacing and self-sacrificing to be believed. Luckily we didn't have to deal with much of her. I loved Kouju Tatsuki. Always love for Taatan, but she's so beautiful in Nohonmono.

Love for Shiokaze Kou being all tough-as-nails. Love for Kaede Saki's eye-patch. Love for Takashiro Kei as the rather ~~gay~~ pretty page. Love for Aran Kei and Shiomi Maho, who made lovely bookends for Koh-chan. Love for Ayabuki Mao, Tatsuki You, and all of the overly-energetic ~~puppies~~ young warriors. Love for Asuka Yuu in a female role. Love for Ebira Kaoru's creepy monk, particularly for her spooktastic makeup. Love for Mirai Yuuki, Kisaki Miri, Konno Mahiru, Amase Izuru (so cute!), and Itsumine Aki -- just because.

Love for the entire concept and love for a ghost story that wasn't nearly as boring as "Ghost at Midnight". And most particularly, love for one of my favorite "battle" scenes done by Takarazuka (When Kaede Saki and co face off against Tom & Taatan). Love even for the Japanese dance, which was graceful and yet each segment short enough that I didn't have time to become bored.

Ravir. Crack. As all good revue shows are.

( Read more... )

Doing the review for Slapstick reminded me of a similarly titled Tsukigumi show that I don't think I've ever written up a review for. This is A Crime. So I'm rectifying that.

Practical Joke
Moon Troupe Drama City, 2001

The story of a man who works behind the scenes of 1960s Hollywood to keep the movie world's secrets secret.

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( Cast )

( Summary: )

What I Thought...

... Can be summarized very easily. This show is informally known as

( That Show Where Kiriyan is Hotter Than Anyone Has a Right to Be, and Yet Incredibly Sweet, and Mami Gives Us a Strip Show Standing on Her Couch. )

Jen says: Three thumbs up!

A Song for Kingdoms (based on the Aida opera)

Sumire Style Stage Graph

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Radames: Kozuki Wataru
Aida: Aran Kei
Amneris: Dan Rei
Amonasro: Itsuki Chihiro
The Pharoah: Ebira Kaoru
Ubaldo: Shiomi Maho
Kheper: Tatsuki You
Kamante: Matobu Sei
Mereruka: Yuzuki Reon
Saufi: Suzumi Shio
Nesser: Ema Naoki
Fatma: Mari Yuzumi

;_; Rip my heart out, why don'cha? Ah, I've always been a sucker for Aida. I remember going to see the opera performed when I was in junior high; I left the theater crying.

Loved it! Loved it, loved it, loved it! The only thing keeping this show from shooting up to the top portion of my list of favorites... is the appalling musumeyaku choruses. But setting aside the fact that apparently they wrote the songs for the key of "ear-splitting sharp," the rest of the show was marvelous. Even Dan-chan's singing was enjoyable. Ohhh, I love Wataru, and this was a nice role for her -- all manly and noble and angsty. Aran Kei was absolutely amazing! I really can't decide whether I like her better in female roles or male ones. She's just so lovely as an onnayaku, but she's also such a great otokoyaku too... You know, I really wish Wataru wasn't retiring, because then I would storm Hankyu Co. headquarters and demand more Wataru-Touko combi! Their scenes together had me all sniffly.

Ah, Shiomi "Crap Yarouze!" Maho in her final Takarazuka role.... I love her villains! And she looked particularly spiffy in her Ethiopian costume, evily licking her sword like a villain straight from a Japanese comic book. In fact, I loved all of the costumes, but I loved the Ethiopian ones the best. Doesn't hurt that Touko, Kero, Un-chan, and Suzumi all looked so nice in them (and their wigs ruled too).

I think I loved just about every character in this play. Chihiro's Amonasro was so very, very cool (crazy one minute, crafty the next). I had some problems with Ebira Kaoru as Pharaoh, because she is forever burned into my mind as Count Almaviva from Figaro, but she also did a lovely job. Ema Naoki back in a male role, and this woman is giving me whiplash with how fast she switches back and forth... Not enough Shii-chan!

So, two thumbs up, though you may want earplugs for certain scenes....

Current Music: Ouke ni Sasagu Uta - 28 Radamesu to Aida

So, I'm going to be productive today at the library, but before I condemn myself to 10 hours of absolute horror, a little fun.

LUNA

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Summary:

On Crescent Island, off the coast of England, a new archaeological site is being excavated: the Lunar Palace. The tycho of Uranus Net Company, Brian Keyes, is sponsoring a beauty contest on the island to choose "a companion for the moon prince", based on local legends. Rock star Alex is invited out to judge the contest. While there he stumbles upon a necklace on the site. The female archaeologist Eileen demands the return of an important artifact, and sparks fly between their two stubborn personalities. Meanwhile we learn that Brian Keyes is not what he seems -- he is actually working on mind-control and genetic alterations with the help of his mad scientist. While fleeing from Brian, who wants Alex's genius DNA, Alex, Eileen and their friends stumble across a hidden chamber belonging to the ancient Lunar Palace. There they manage to awaken the spirit of the Moon Prince, who died in a lover's suicide with his forbidden human companion. The Moon Prince in Alex's body sees Eileen, who reminds him of his lost love. Brian, seeing the new powers of Alex-cum-Moon-Prince, gets even more fired up to capture the singer.... Chaos ensues.

I'm actually working on a more detailed summary, scenes I-IV can be found here.

What I thought:

This was the second show that I ever saw, based on the excellent advice of

mosellegreen. At that time I had no interest in Rika, and completely overlooked her villainous character. Now I love Brian Keyes quite madly, but I don't know if that's from repeated watchings, or from the fact that Rika became my favorite 'sienne. Mami is brilliant as Alex and the Moon Prince. She's just so beautiful in this show! Dan Rei is sweet, especially with Gaichi playing her tag-along archaeologist friend. And speaking of archaeologists ... well, that's me. How can I not love this show? A show with a song about "out of place artifacts"? A show where Tani is brain-washed into thinking that she's Elvis? A show which cracks me up every, single time, yet still manages to fit in a painfully beautiful lover's suicide?

( Pictures: )

Blue Moon Blue

There are no words for this show, really. I think most everyone has seen it, since DESPA is distributing the Sky Stage version. It has fedoras and feathers....and pimps and bunny-girls and clowns and turbans and afros and... yeah. You have to see it to believe it. This is Takarazuka Revue Crack at its finest.

The plot? Something along the lines of... soldier meets Red Flower. Soldier falls in love with Red Flower. Soldier follows Red Flower through various freaky worlds which may or may not be the product of too much sun in the desert.

( Pictures: )

I said I'd let you all know about this mysterious "Takarazuka 2005: Star Troupe Revue" NHK show that DESPA is distributing. Well, I got it yesterday and although I didn't have time to watch it, I stuck it in to just see what the format looked like. Imagine my shock when I saw what looked like all of Nagasaki Shigure-Zaka and a good chunk of Soul of Shiva!

Today I couldn't wait any longer; I had to know.

Indeed, this is an NHK New Year's Special. It begins with two men interviewing the newly retired Dan Rei, and some very quick clips of her first show as Top Musumeyaku of Tsukigumi, and the performance Takarazuka did in China. Then they moved on to talk about Nagasaki Shigure Hill. This is about 20 minutes of interview. Next, the musical! And, indeed, it's the whole thing. The sound isn't as good as most DESPA shows, and there are some black outs and problems having to do with the original they copied from, but none last more than a second or two, and there's no missed dialogue.

I loved this show so much more this second time around. For one thing, with the help of the camera, I got a lot more close-ups than I had from my mid-audience seat. ^^; For another, I actually knew all of the stars this time around. Otherwise: Aran Kei's first outfit is just as brilliant as I remember it being live, Tom's gangster accent is just as sexy, Wataru's performance just as charismatic (this is the show that had me loving Kozuki Wataru before I even knew who Kozuki Wataru was), and the festival dancing just as impressive.

And again, during the final scene I was struck with the fact that Unosuke loved Isaji much more than he loved Oshima. I'm certain of it. *sniffle*

After the musical, there's another 10 or so minutes of interview and a tour around the modern Nagasaki Shigure Hill. (At this point I pulled out my program and started comparing their photographs of Wataru at all the historical places with the video footage. I am such a geek.) Then an introduction to the revue show, with Dan-chan explaining the plot. And then Soul of Shiva. Unfortunately, it cuts off after the first nine acts, but I have to tell you, all my favorite parts of the revue show were basically in those first nine acts anyway. The white shoes dance, the Stomp-like street tap dance number, the tuxedo dance in the club....

So I am a very, very happy Jenichi. *GLEE* Though I suspect sooner or later I'm going to break down and buy the commercial DVD anyway.

Nagasaki/Soul Sumire Stage Graph

Ima Sumire Hana Saku / ESP!!

It has been too long since I had a Mami-era Tsukigumi show to watch. All of my favorite seito, plus a few extras from senka. This tape contains two shows, both of which were used as the revues for the play Ai no Sonata. Since they were Mami's last shows, this was a special tape. It's only 80 minutes running time.

Ima Sumire Hana Saku is another of those 20 minute traditional Japanese dance shows starring the incredible Kasugano Yachiyo and Matsumoto Yuri. Can I possibly describe my glee at hearing Kiriyan lead the chorus, or watching Mami, Rika, Yuuhi, Shiomi Maho, Shiokaze Kou, and Tani dancing around in kimono? Oh, there is glee. This is the Tsukigumi I first fell in love with.

ESP!! is definitely a Mami revue show. I'm trying to figure out why she always got these absolutely bizarre shows. I mean, revue shows are always bizarre, but Blue Moon Blue? And this one is nearly as odd. I think I've got it. It's because Makoto Tsubasa has the balls to pull it off. She's got that untouchable star aura that says: "Yeah, I own this stage. And yeah, I own all of you. And I know it." I don't think I'd get along with her at all if we ever met face to face, but maybe that's just her stage persona. Anyway, she can use that to stare you down. "You're saying something is odd? Yeah? No? OK, good." ♥

The best parts? Rika singing "Born to be Wild" in cowboy getup, complete with boots. Mami as the Beast, eating poor angel Dan-chan and gleefully wiping the blood away from her mouth. The Spanish song with all the otokoyaku in female guise, and Rika feeling up a snarky looking Shiokaze. Actually there was a lot of roaming hands in this show.... The duet/trio dance to "A Whiter Shade of Pale." The chorus line to Verdi's "Anvil Chorus." And the best? The conversation (mainly in English) between Rika and Mami. I had to listen to it twice before I could make out what Mami was saying.

Mami: Jama suru na! (Don't get in my way!)
Rika: Jama suru na!
M: OK. ESP de ikou. (Let's go to ESP.)
R: OK, ESP!
M: Me wa [can't make this out] ni. You wa-
R: Honto ni. (Really.)
M: OK. Ja, from me.
R: Why?
M: I'm the Top. You're getting changed time, OK, please?
R: OK! *runs off stage*
M: OK...

It gets funnier from there.

*happy sigh* I love Moon Troupe.

Current Mood: amused
Current Music: Frankie Avalon - Beauty School Dropout

(Most likely the last fun thing to be posted this week, because now I have to buckle down and be productive.)

TCA Special 2003 ~Dear Grand Theater~

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• Vid clip here on the TCA special page.
• Listing of songs and singers at the Cherry Blossoms web site here.

Top Stars: Haruno Sumire & Fuzuki Miyo (Hana), Shibuki Jun & Emi Kurara (Tsuki), Asami Hikaru & Maikaze Rira (Yuki), Kozuki Wataru & Dan Rei (Hoshi), Todoroki Yuu (Senka)

( Others )

To be honest, I stuck this DVD into my player first when I got home last week, because it had Rika. But I didn't make it past the Top Star MC section. It just wasn't holding my attention, and I wasn't in the mood for sparkle, so I switched to Naked City. Then yesterday I tried again, and am I ever glad I did. Holy cow. I haven't laughed that hard in a while.

The basic premise for this special is that it was the 10th anniversary of the new Takarazuka theater. Each troupe has about 20 minutes to do a sketch outlining the high points of their shows over those ten years. They each had a base show which was the background, and then characters from other shows would stumble into this play.

( Act 1 )

( Act 2 )

Loved it. LOVED IT. I do love Zuka comedy and in-jokes, very, very much. The 'siennes were in top form, dropping jokes with perfectly straight faces and I wish I had the time, knowledge, and inclination to write more of them down, because they were funny.

Current Mood: amused

The Energy 2 ~1998 Shinjin Koen Digest~

Snow: "Asaji Inn", Takashiro Kei
Moon: "Kuroi Hitomi", Yamato Yuuga
Cosmos: "Elisabeth", Yumeki Noa

Ohhh, I do love these shinjin koen digests. I'm so glad I snapped up three more when they were offered. Yet again I wonder why they stopped doing them. If I'm going to buy a full show, I'm going to spend my money on the older cast, but these digests are perfect for the younger stars. I'm only missing 5-7 now. I don't suppose anyone wants to sell theirs?

( Asaji ga Yado )

( Kuroi Hitomi )

( Elisabeth )

TCA Special 2004: Takarazuka 90 ~On the Road to 100~

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Top Stars: Haruno Sumire & Fuzuki Miyo (Hana), Ayaki Nao & Emi Kurara (Tsuki), Hikaru Asami & Maikaze Rira (Yuki), Kozuki Wataru & Dan Rei (Hoshi), Wao Youka & Hanafusa Mari (Sora), Todoroki Yuu (Senka).

( Others )

This made for a very odd show for me, because everyone was so close to their current positions, but not quite, if you know what I mean. I was very excited when I knew all of the Tsukigumi members coming down during the "Five Troupes Together Plus One" song when everyone paraded down the stairs. I'm becoming very fond of that song. In any case, this show was split into sections so that each troupe could do a selection from an important Takarazuka show from the past and a "show stage" with highlights from old revue shows. They also discussed the history of Takarazuka in the MC sections.

( ACT I )

( ACT II )

All in all, it was a nice show-case of the history of Takarazuka.

Endless Flight / The Season of Angels / Applause Takarazuka!

Sumire Style Stage Graph photos

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This was an interesting DVD, particularly because it included three different shows over the course of the performance. The first was a celebration of the 90th anniversary of Takarazuka. Endless Flight had traditional Japanese-style dances and stared Senka members Kasugano Yachiyo (the oldest member of Takarazuka, who joined the music school in 1928), Matsumoto Yuri (who joined the music school in 1956), and Todoroki Yuu (who joined the music school in '83, if you're interested). It was beautiful, and can I just say how awed I am by Kasugano-san, who was 88-years-old at the time of the performance? This segment only lasts about 20 minutes.

The Season of Angels is funny. Sena Jun's character in particular had me grinning and giggling like crazy ("Ah, ah, ah, ah"), particularly when she went out and spent at least 2 minutes hiding in the audience. However, although I enjoyed the humor and comedy in this spoof of a play, I had a very difficult time understanding the takarasiennes, who spent most of the play talking in strange voices and with strange accents and talking a-mile-a-minute. The songs also didn't impress me at all. Finally, I felt really sorry for Fuu-chan, who ended up with a tooth-ache inducing character.

( Summary of Season )

The last section is the revue show,

( Applause Takarazuka! ) I liked this revue show, I really did. It had all of the things I love most in a revue show, plus lots of opportunities for the tops to have pair dances. And the bonus disc! The bonus disc with all of the other top pairs performing in certain parts of the show. I loved that too, because more Rika and Kurara is never a bad thing.

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TCA Special 2002 LOVE

This was the show with the top stars of the time, as well as the Senka stars (which were a LOT back then, though now it's just poor Tom all by herself).
Flower: Otori Rei
Moon: Shibuki Jun, Emi Kurara
Snow: Emao Yuu, Konno Mahiru
Star: Kouju Tatsuki, Nagisa Aki
Cosmos: Wao Youka, Hanafusa Mari
Senka: Hatsukaze Midori, Kozuki Wataru, Iori Naoki, Ayaki Nao, Naruse Kouki

( Read more... )

TCA Special 2002 DREAM

Now this show had the up-and-coming 'siennes, and there was dancing. And Elvis impersonators.
Flower: Haruno Sumire, Sena Jun, Maikaze Rira, Touno Asuka
Moon: Kiriya Hiromu, Yamato Yuuga, Hanase Mizuka (*resists urge to pun*), Shijou Rui
Snow: Asami Hikaru, Takashiro Kei, Asaki Yumemi, Shirahane Yuri
Star: Aran Kei, Yumeki Noa, Kanou Chika, Koto Marie
Cosmos: Mizu Natsuki, Kuon Maya, Fuzuki Miyo, Ayano Kanami
Senka: Todoroki Yuu, Dan Rei

( Read more... )

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I've been meaning to post something about hoshigumi's "Nagasaki Shigure Hill Road", which I saw in Tokyo last month. I'm not a Star Troupe fan, really-- I mean, I don't know anything about the actresses in the company. I was a little disappointed by Dan Rei, actually. I think my expectations were too high, and I was waiting to be blown out of my seat by this two-time top musume-yaku. I think a lot of it was due to her part, though. Oshima didn't really give her a chance to shine, and the heavy, traditional-type makeup obscured a lot. Plus it was the first of two performances for the day, so I doubt she could have put all her energy into it.

Kozuki Wataru was the one who really caught my attention. She played the part of Unosuke well, and managed to make the character sympathetic and charmingly funny at times. I thought it was unusual that the top star didn't have the lead romantic role, but it was a nice change.

Tom's performance as the criminal-ish Isaji was really great fun to listen to. I just love rough-man Japanese slang and pronounciation. And the costumes for him and his men were great!

However, I'd definitely get the DVD just on the strength of "Soul of Shiva", which was glittery, golden revue of the best kind. I really like revues that tell a story, rather than being more disjointed, and this one seemed unusual (to me, if I'm remembering this correctly) because it had actual dialogue in it.

But my memory's failing, so I'll leave it at that.

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Page Summary

Asaji ga Yado / Ravir
Practical Joke (DC)
A Song for Kingdoms
LUNA / Blue Moon Blue
Nagasaki Shigure Hill, take two
Ima Sumire Hana Saku / ESP!!
TCA Special 2003 Dear Grand Theater
The Energy-2
TCA Special 2004: Takarazuka 90 ~On the Road to 100~
Endless Flight / The Season of Angels / Applause Takarazuka!
TCA Special 2002 LOVE/DREAM
Nagasaki Shigure Hill Road / Soul of Shiva

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Takarazuka Journal

Entries tagged with dan rei

Asaji ga Yado / Ravir

Practical Joke (DC)

A Song for Kingdoms

LUNA / Blue Moon Blue

Nagasaki Shigure Hill, take two

Ima Sumire Hana Saku / ESP!!

TCA Special 2003 Dear Grand Theater

The Energy-2

TCA Special 2004: Takarazuka 90 ~On the Road to 100~

Endless Flight / The Season of Angels / Applause Takarazuka!

TCA Special 2002 LOVE/DREAM

Nagasaki Shigure Hill Road / Soul of Shiva